Tennessee is so rich in diversity. We need to take every step possible to protect and preserve our natural heritage.

The result of their studies was an article in the October 2017 issue of the Bulletin of the Peabody Museum of Natural History titled “New Species of Logperch Endemic to Tennessee” that announced the new fish to the scientific community.

Simmons said naming the fish as “percina apina” was easy.

“I was snorkeling one day at Hurricane Creek with this new species and the water was so clear and clean, and the visibility was excellent, and I thought, ‘This fish needs a name that reflects these qualities,’” he said. “So we gave it the name apina, which in Greek describes things that are clean or without dirt.”